Installation for producing products using a fluid

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for producing products using a fluid, which enables one to control the quality of the fluid from the point of production to the point of use, monitored on a microbiological, physical, and chemical basis. At least one sensor for the acquisition of purity information and a system for storing such purity information is included.

The present invention relates to a plant for producing products using afluid, of the type comprising:

-   -   means for communicating with a source of the fluid;    -   means for delivering the fluid;    -   means for producing products associated with the means for        delivering the fluid, in order to use the fluid in the        production of products;    -   at least one device for purifying the fluid, placed between the        communicating means and the delivery means; and    -   at least one sensor for the acquisition of purity information        relating to the purity of the fluid downstream of the        purification device.

The invention applies, for example, to the production of food,pharmaceutical, parapharmaceutical, electronic, etc. products.

Many fluids, and especially gases (whether pure or a mixture), such asnitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, argon, helium,hydrogen, etc., are used in the production of food products.

Such fluids may be used as technological auxiliary and are therefore notinvolved in or do not come into contact with finished food products atthe time of their consumption. They are, for example, cryogenic fluidsused to chill food products.

Such fluids may also be used as additives or as ingredients, andtherefore remain in or in contact with the finished food products. Theseare, for example, fluids used as propellants or for forming protectiveatmospheres or for modifying the pH.

EP-932 007 discloses a plant for the filtration in liquid phase of acryogenic fluid for removing microorganisms and/or physical particles.This plant does not include a sensor for the acquisition of informationrelating to the purity of the cryogenic fluid.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,759,848 discloses a plant for sterilizing a cryogenicliquid by filtration, and this plant also does not include a sensor forthe acquisition of information relating to the purity of the filteredliquid.

FR-2 728 803 discloses a dry-air delivery system that includes means forpurifying compressed air, but no sensor for acquisition of informationrelating to its purity.

WO-98/48259 discloses an in-line device for quantitatively andqualitatively differentiating between biotic and abiotic particles of agas.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,428,555 discloses a system for obtaining and analyzinginformation relating to a process for producing semiconductor chipsusing a gas. That document does not mention the use of means forpurifying the gas nor a sensor for the acquisition of informationrelating to the purity of the gas.

EP-584 747 discloses a plant of the aforementioned type that useshigh-purity helium for the production of products. A purity measurementis carried out downstream of the purification devices that are connectedin parallel and containing desiccants, adsorbents and/or oxidationcatalysts. Such a measurement makes it possible to determine whether thehelium must pass through one or other of the two devices, or throughboth of them, in order to ensure satisfactory purification.

However, the plant according to EP-584 747 does not provide proof thatthe manufactured products were manufactured in a safe manner, that -isto say using- helium of satisfactory purity, and no storage of thehelium purification information is described.

It is an object of the invention to solve this problem by providing aplant of the aforementioned type that makes it possible to certify thatthe production of the products was carried out in a safe manner.

This is because it should be pointed out that although the quality ofthe gases delivered by the gas producer and/or supplier is usuallyguaranteed, on the other hand no guarantee or no systematic control ofthe quality of the gases from the chemical, physical and/ormicrobiological standpoint is provided at the point of use. Theinfluence of the system on the quality of the gas is not monitored, andlikewise the constancy over time of the quality of the gases at thepoint of use is not checked.

The generalized use of HACCP methods in food companies requires users toestablish critical control points where risks (of a microbiological,physical or chemical nature) may arise. The quality of the gases at thepoint of use is therefore a critical point to be controlled within thecontext of this approach so as to ensure that the gas in contact withthe food is not a source of contamination.

The object of the present invention is to formulate an overall approachfor controlling and/or guaranteeing the quality of the gases or of thegas mixture from production to the point of use from themicrobiological, physical and chemical standpoint.

It is preferable to include the setting up of measures for removingchemical, physical and/or microbiological contaminants at the point ofuse, the setting-up of a control system for checking the quality of thegases or of the gas mixture right up to the point of use, the setting-upof a continuous recording system for archiving the information(measurements, maintenance operations, failures) that occur along thegas delivery line and the setting-up of a traceability system forlinking the delivery of the gases with the customer's productionbatches.

For this purpose, the subject of the invention is a plant of theaforementioned type, characterized in that the plant includes means forstoring the purity information.

According to particular embodiments, the plant may include one or moreof the following features, taken individually or in any technicallypossible combination:

-   -   at least one purification device is a device for removing        chemical impurities, and at least one sensor is a sensor for the        acquisition of purity information relating to the chemical        impurity content of the fluid, said sensor being placed        downstream of said purification device;    -   at least one purification device is a device for removing        physical impurities, and at least one sensor is a sensor for the        acquisition of purity information relating to the physical        impurity content of the fluid, said sensor being placed        downstream of said purification device;    -   at least one purification device is a device for removing        microbiological impurities, and at least one sensor is a sensor        for the acquisition of impurity information relating to the        microbiological impurity content of the fluid, said sensor being        placed downstream of the device for removing microbiological        impurities;    -   the plant includes first association means for associating the        purity information with first information for the identification        of at least one product;    -   the first identification information is intermediate and        temporal identification information and in that the plant        includes a first clock for delivering the first identification        information;    -   the plant includes, on the one hand, a second clock that        delivers second temporal and intermediate identification        information and, on the other hand, second associating means for        associating the second temporal information with third, final        identification information;    -   the first identification information is final identification        information;    -   it includes at least two devices for purifying the fluid and        means for the selective connection of these devices to the        delivery means and in that it furthermore includes a unit for        controlling the selective connection means according to the        purity information;    -   it includes a fluid piping system that connects the        communicating means and the delivery means, in which system the        purification device is placed, and the plant includes means for        cleaning and/or sterilizing at least one part of the system and        a unit for controlling the cleaning and/or sterilizing means        according to the purity information;    -   the delivery means are means for delivering the fluid in gaseous        phase;    -   the plant includes a tank for storing the fluid, said tank being        connected to the communicating means;    -   the storage tank is a tank for storing the fluid in liquid        phase; and    -   the production means are means for producing food products.

The subject of the invention is also a method of producing productsusing a fluid, comprising the steps of:

-   -   withdrawal of the fluid from a source of the fluid;    -   purification of the withdrawn fluid in at least one purification        device;    -   acquisition of at least purity information relating to the        purity of the fluid by means of at least one sensor placed        downstream of the purification device;    -   delivery of the purified fluid by means of delivery means; and    -   production of products using the delivered fluid, being        characterized in that it further includes the step of storing        the purity information.

According to particular modes of implementation, the method may includeone or more of the following features, taken individually or in anytechnically possible combination:

-   -   the purification step is a step of removing a chemical impurity        and in that the purity information acquired is information        relating to the chemical impurity content of the fluid after the        purification step;    -   the purification step is a step of removing a physical impurity,        and in that the purity information acquired is information        relating to the physical impurity content of the fluid after the        purification step;    -   the purification step is a step of removing a microbiological        impurity and in that the purity information acquired is        information relating to the microbiological impurity content of        the fluid after the purification step;    -   the method furthermore includes a first step of associating the        purity information with first information for the identification        of at least one product;    -   the first identification information is intermediate and        temporal identification information delivered by a first clock;    -   it furthermore includes a second step of associating second        temporal information delivered by a second clock and third,        final identification information;    -   the first identification information is final identification        information;    -   it includes a step for the selective connection of at least two        purification devices to the delivery means, the selective        connection step being controlled according to the purity        information;    -   with the fluid piping system connecting the source of the fluid        and the delivery means, it includes a step of cleaning and/or        sterilizing at least part of the system, the cleaning and/or        sterilizing step being controlled according to-the purity        information;    -   the delivery step is a step of delivering the fluid in gaseous        phase;    -   the source of the fluid is a storage tank;    -   the storage tank is a tank for storing the fluid in liquid        phase; and    -   the production step is a step of producing food or        pharmaceutical or parapharmaceutical or electronic products.

The invention will be better understood on reading the description thatfollows, given solely by way of example and with reference to theappended drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a plant in a first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a variant, of the plant shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a plant in a second embodiment of theinvention; and

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a plant in a third embodiment.

FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a plant 1 for producing products 3using compressed air as technological auxiliary. More specifically, theproducts 3 are produced by production means 5 which ensure, for example,in-line production as illustrated by the arrow 7 in FIG. 1.

The plant 1 includes a compressed-air piping and delivery system 8. Thissystem 8 comprises two upstream air piping lines 9A and 9B connected toa downstream air piping line 10, which is itself connected to theproduction means 5.

Since the structures of the lines 9A and 9B are similar, the samenumerical references will be used, but followed either by the suffix Ain the case of the line 9A or the suffix B in the case of the line 9B.For the same reason, only the structure and the operation of the line 9Awill be described in detail below.

The line 9A comprises, in succession from the upstream end to thedownstream end:

-   -   a line 11A for communication with the ambient atmosphere, which        forms the source of air;    -   an air compressor 13A;    -   a valve 15A;    -   a purification unit 17A;    -   a nonreturn valve 19A; and    -   a valve 21A.

The purification unit 17A comprises, in succession from the upstream tothe downstream end:

-   -   a cyclone filter 23A;    -   a prefilter 25 a for removing particles having a size larger        than 25 μm;    -   a submicron filter 27A for removing particles having sizes of        greater than 0.1 μm, for example a coalescing filter;    -   a submicron filter 29A for removing particles having        dimensions-of larger than 0.01 μm, for example a coalescing        filter;    -   two desiccators 31A placed in parallel and each comprising a        container filled with an adsorbent, such as alumina;    -   an active-carbon filter 33A; and    -   a dust filter 35A, for example a filter made of sintered        material.

It should be noted that the various elements of the upstream line 9A areconventional elements.

The downstream line 10 comprises, in succession from the upstream end tothe downstream end:

-   -   a buffer tank 37;    -   a valve 39;    -   a bacteriological filter 41, for example a hydrophobic        pleated-membrane filter;    -   a nonreturn valve 43; and    -   a valve 44.

These various elements are also conventional elements.

The downstream line 10 is connected upstream of the tank 37 to a firstbranch line 45 and, between the bacteriological filter 41 and thenonreturn valve 43, to a second branch line 47. The branch line 45 isprovided with a valve 49 and is connected in parallel to a sensor 51 formeasuring the water or moisture content and to a sensor 53 for measuringthe CO and CO₂ content. These sensors are also-conventional elements.

The second branch line 47 is provided with a valve 55 and is connectedto a sensor 57 for measuring information relating to the microbiologicalpurity, for example a sensor capable of determining the content ofbiotic particles as described in WO-98/48259.

The plant 1 furthermore includes an electronic data processing unit 59and, connected to this unit 59, are a memory 61 and a clock 63. The unit59 comprises in particular a microprocessor suitably programmed toensure that the operations described below are carried out. Moreover,the sensors 51, 53 and 57 are connected to the unit 59 in order todeliver to it information relating to the characteristics or quantitiesthat they measure.

The production means described below will, for example, be means forproducing containers 3 for containing milk. They could also becontainers for containing a dessert cream. The description of thesemeans 5 will be limited to elements needed for the description of theinvention and will therefore be very schematic, the rest of these means5 being moreover conventional.

The means 5 include a tank 64 containing milk. The top of this tank 64is connected to the downstream section 65 of the line 10. The tank 64feeds, via its bottom, means 66 for filling the containers 3. A valve 67is placed between the bottom of the tank 64 and the filling means 66.

The production means 5 furthermore include an electronic data processingunit 69 and, connected to this unit, are means 71 for providing theproducts 3 with final identification information, for example a batchnumber, a clock 73 synchronized with the clock 63, and a memory 75. Theunit 69 comprises in particular a microprocessor suitably programmed forensuring that the operations described below are carried out.

The operation of the plant 1 is as follows. The valves 15A and 21A areopen, whereas the valves 15B and 21B are closed.

Air from the external atmosphere is piped via the line 11A, compressedby the compressor 13A and then undergoes predesiccation in the filter23A, making it possible to remove about 96% by weight of the watercontained in the air. Next, the filters 25A, 27A and 29A remove most ofthe hydrocarbons that the air may contain, and especially the oils.Typically, the oil content of the air output by the filter 29A is lessthan 0.01 ppm.

The air then passes through one of the desiccators 31A in which it isdesiccated by an adsorption process. The other desiccator 31A is then inregeneration phase, by elution as is conventional, for example using astream of dry air taken off as output from the buffer tank 37.Typically, the dew point of the air output by the desiccator 31A used is−40° C. or below.

The desiccated air then passes through the filter 33A where the lasttraces and odors of oil are substantially removed (the residual contentis about 0.003 ppm) and then the filter 35A, which removes the dustcontained in the air.

The air leaving the unit 17A contains, per m³, fewer than 3520 particleshaving a size greater than or equal to 0.5 μm (ISO Class 5 according tothe classes defined by ISO 14644-1). The moisture content of the air isthen less than 0.05% and its hydrocarbon content is less than 100 μl/l(0.09 mg/M³)

The air thus compressed, desiccated, dedusted and deoiled is then sentto the buffer tank 37.

The valve 39 is opened to withdraw air from the tank 37. Themicroorganisms present in this air are removed by the filter 41. Sincethe valve 44 is open, the air thus compressed and purified is deliveredto the top of the tank 64 via the downstream section 65 of the line 10.The compressed air therefore pushes the milk to the bottom of the tank64, expelling it from the tank 64 and therefore filling the containers3.

The products 3 are thus produced by means of the compressed and purifiedair delivered solely by the line 9A and the line 10, the line 9B notbeing used.

During this production run, the valves 49 and 55 of the branch lines 45and 47 are open in order to allow the sensors 51, 53 and 57 to make, anddeliver to the unit 59:

-   -   a measurement of the moisture content of the air used for        producing the products 3;    -   a measurement of the CO and CO₂ content of the air used, this        content being a tracer of a possible drift in the oil content of        the air used to produce the products 3; and    -   a measurement of the content of biotic particles, this content        being representative of the content of microbiological        impurities of the air used to produce the products 3.

These various items of information transmitted to the unit 59 areassociated therein with temporal information delivered by the clock 63.This time-associated information is then stored in the memory 61. Thus,this stored information makes it possible to determine, for a giveninstant, or for a given time period, the purity, in terms of moisture,CO/CO₂ content and microbiological impurity content, of the air used forproducing the products 3.

Similarly, the electronic data processing unit 69 associates the finalinformation for identifying the products 3, which are delivered by themeans 71, with temporal information delivered by the clock 73, and thefinal information is stored in the memory 75. Thus, for given products3, it is possible to known the instant, or the time period, when theywere produced.

Since the plant 1 shown in FIG. 1 records the information about thepurity of the air used for producing the products 3, it is possible tocheck that this production was carried out under satisfactory safety andquality conditions.

Moreover, the user of the plant 1 is capable of proving that givenproducts 3 were produced using air of satisfactory purity.

This is because it is possible, for given products 3, to known at whatinstant, or during which time period, they were produced, thanks to theinformation stored in the memory 75. This temporal information thereforemakes it possible, thanks to the information stored in the memory 61, todetermine the information regarding the purity of the air used at thatinstant, or during that time period. It should be noted that thetemporal information delivered by the clocks 63 and 73 constitutesintermediate identification information. Furthermore, it should be notedthat one and the same clock can be used instead of these two clocks todeliver the same intermediate identification information to the units 59and 69.

The plant 1 therefore makes it possible to implement traceability andquality procedures for meeting the enhanced safety requirements in thefood sector.

The electronic data processing unit 59 may furthermore be designed tocommand the closing of the valves 15A and 21A on the one hand, and theopening of the valves 15B and 21B on the other, so that the air iscompressed and purified, upstream of the tank 37, by the line 9B ratherthan by the line 9A. This command may be issued as soon as the unit 59determines, by comparison, that the water or oil content has exceeded arespective predetermined threshold value stored in the memory 61. Thus,the unit 59 may selectively command the lines 9A and 9B to be connectedto the line 10 so as to guarantee the quality of the air used forproducing the products 3.

More generally, the purity information received by the unit 59 may beused to carry out various actions on the lines 9A, 9B and 10, so as tocorrect the observed purity defects.

It should also be noted that the plant 1 may comprise only a singleupstream line 9 (another variant may be the use of a single means ofcommunication with a fluid source, namely the use of a single compressorconnected to the two purification lines 9A and 9B).

Thus, FIG. 2 illustrates a variant of the plant 1 that is distinguishedfrom that described above by the fact that the system 8 comprises onlyone upstream line 9. The downstream line 10 is provided with a thirdbranch line 81 located between the branch line 47 and the nonreturnvalve 43 and with a fourth branch line 83 located between the valve 39and the filter 41.

The branch line 81 is provided with a valve 85 and is connected to asource 87 of a cleaning and/or sterilizing fluid, for example STEROXAL(registered trade mark) sold by L'Air Liquide, or a source of vapor.

The branch line 83 is vented at its opposite end to that connecting itto the downstream line 10. However, it should be noted that it could beconnected to the line 81 so as to allow the cleaning and/or sterilizingfluid used to be recycled.

When the unit 59 determines, by comparison, that the microbiologicalimpurity content information delivered by the sensor 57 is greater thana predetermined threshold value stored in the memory 61, the unit 59then causes the valves 39 and 44 to be closed and the valves 85 and 89to be opened.

The fluid in the reservoir 87 then passes through the filter 41, whichsterilizes it, and is then vented-via the line 83. This cleaning and/orsterilizing operation is continued for a predetermined time and then theunit 59 causes the valves 85 and 89 to be closed and the valves 39 and44 to be opened.

Thus, the unit 59.is designed to clean and/or sterilize the line 10should it be necessary, thereby making it possible even moresignificantly to guarantee the quality of the air used for producing theproducts 3.

It should be noted that the sensor 57 may be replaced with a device fortaking off discrete samples of gas, which may be analyzed in terms ofmicrobiological contamination by a laboratory located on a site awayfrom that of the plant 1. The microbiological purity informationdelivered by the laboratory is associated, together with the purityinformation delivered by the sensors 51 and 53, with the temporalinformation delivered by the clock 63. The information thus associatedis stored in the memory 61.

The principles of purification, acquisition of purity-relatedinformation and recording of this information may be applied to alltypes of gases or even of fluids used in the production of products. Inparticular, the fluid used for producing the products may be deliveredin liquid form.

FIG. 3 thus illustrates a general form of the invention in which thesystem 8 comprises, from the upstream end to the downstream end, astorage tank 91, for example for storing, in liquid form, a fluid to bedelivered, a line 11, a purification unit 17, a line 10 and means 65 fordelivering, for example in gaseous form as in the examples of FIGS. 1and 2, the purified fluid. These means 65 are associated with means 5for producing products 3.

A sensor 51 makes it possible, thanks to a branch line 45, to measure acharacteristic relating to the purity of the fluid downstream of thepurification unit 17. This sensor 51 transmits this information to theelectronic data processing unit 59, which also receives finalinformation, delivered by identification means 93, for identifying theproducts 3. The purity information delivered by the sensor 51 and theproduct identification information delivered by the means 93 arecombined by the unit 59 and then stored in the memory 61 so as to makeit possible to determine, in respect of given products 3, what was thepurity information acquired by the sensor 51 for the fluid used forproducing these products 3.

This information combined by the unit 59 may also be sent via a remotecommunication device 95, such as a modem, to a monitoring installationaway from the site of the plant 1.

As illustrated by the arrows 97 and 99, the unit 59 may also be designedto act on the purification unit 17 or on the means 5 for producing theproducts 3 according to the information received by the sensor 51.

This may, for example, involve initiating a step of cleaning and/orsterilizing the lines 10 and 11 and/or the unit 17, when the unit 59determines, by comparison, that the value measured by the sensor 51exceeds a predetermined threshold value stored in the memory 61.

In general, the unit 17 may be a unit designed to eliminate physicalimpurities, such as dust, chemical impurities, such as water, ormicrobiological impurities, such as bacteria.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the combining of the informationdelivered by the sensor 51 with the final information for identifyingthe products 3 makes it possible to correlate the purity informationwith the products 3 so as to use intermediate identificationinformation, such as temporal information delivered by a clock.

It should be noted that the correlation of the information delivered bythe sensor 51 with the products 3, including via temporal information,is not absolutely essential, just the storage in the memory 61 of theinformation delivered by the sensor 51 making it possible to prove thatsafety and quality conditions have indeed been met during production ofat least certain products 3.

It should also be noted that the unit or units or purification deviceswill in general be placed downstream of critical sections of the system8. Moreover, it is preferable to place the purity measurement sensor orsensors as close as possible to the fluid delivery means 65.

FIG. 4 illustrates in general a plant 1 dedicated to the production offood products 3. Thus, the system 8 is made up from elementsspecifically designed for the food industry and making it possible inparticular to limit the risks of chemical, physical and microbiologicalcontamination. Furthermore, the plant is distinguished by what followsfrom that of FIG. 3.

The system 8, the structure of which has not been shown in detail inFIG. 4, may comprise all types of elements, and especially purificationunits or devices, although this is not absolutely essential, unlike thecase of FIG. 3.

The sensor 51 measures a value of a characteristic of the fluid, whichmay, although this is not necessary, be related to its purity. Thus,this characteristic may be a physical, chemical or biological impuritycontent, but it may also be the temperature, the pressure, etc.

The electronic data processing unit 59:

-   -   compares the value measured by the sensor 51 with a        predetermined threshold value stored in the memory 61, which        corresponds to a value that it is desired to guarantee in        respect of the characteristic;    -   associates the values delivered by the sensor 51 with final        identification information delivered by the identification means        93 so as to correlate each measured value with the product(s) 3        produced by the use of the fluid with the feature having the        measured value; and    -   stores the values, and the information thus associated, in the        memory 61.

Should the measured value exceed the predetermined threshold value, theelectronic unit 59 is furthermore designed to initiate the execution ofactions.

Some of these actions may be carried out on at least a part 101 of thepiping and delivering system 8, as illustrated by the arrow 97. Thismay, for example, be the removal of the part 101 and its replacement bya new part 101.

This may also be the substitution of a part of the system 8 for anotherpart, in order to pipe and deliver the fluid, as was described withregard to FIG. 1 for substituting the upstream line 9B for the upstreamline 9A. In this case, the action is executed by the unit 59.

The action may also be to stop the delivery of the fluid, by closure ofa valve of the system 8 by the unit 59, or to remove the source 91 andreplace it with a new source 91.

Actions may also be carried out by the unit 59 on the means 5 forproducing the products 3, as illustrated by the arrow 99. For example,these production means 5 may then be shut down after making the fluiddelivery line safe (by stopping the supply of fluid).

Furthermore, one action may be the generation of an alarm signal by adevice 103.

This signal may, as shown schematically in FIG. 4, be an audible signalemitted by a loud speaker, but it may also be an optical signal emitted,for example, by a monitoring screen.

The plant 1 therefore makes it possible to execute corrective measuresafter detecting the non-compliance of constraints imposed on thecharacteristic of the fluid.

Furthermore, associating the measured values with information foridentifying the products, and the subsequent storage in the memory 61 ofthe information, makes it possible to check a posteriori what was thevalue of the characteristic of the fluid used for the production ofcertain products 3.

Thus, the plant 1 makes it possible to implement traceabilityprocedures, and contributes even more to guaranteeing that thecharacteristic of the fluid used does indeed comply with certainpredetermined constraints. It should be noted that the threshold valuemay be a maximum value to be respected or a minimum value to berespected. Thus, the electronic unit 59 can initiate the execution ofthe various actions when the measured value exceeds the threshold valueor when it falls below the threshold value.

Finally, it should be noted that the measured values may be associatednot with final identification information but with intermediateidentification information, for example temporal information deliveredby a clock as described with regard to FIGS. 1 and 2.

1-28. (canceled).
 29. An apparatus for producing products using a fluid,comprising: a) a means for communicating with a source of the fluid; b)a means for delivering said fluid; c) a means for producing productsassociated with said means for delivering said fluid in order to usesaid fluid in the production of said products; d) at least one means forpurifying said fluid, placed between said communicating means and saiddelivery means; e) at least one sensing means for acquiring informationrelating to said purity of said fluid downstream of said purifyingmeans; and f) a means for storing the purity information.
 30. Theapparatus of claim 29, wherein said purifying means is a device forremoving chemical impurities, and wherein said sensing means is a sensorfor acquiring said purity information relating to the chemical impuritycontent of said fluid, said sensor being placed downstream of saidpurification device.
 31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein saidpurifying means is a device for removing physical impurities, andwherein said sensing means is a sensor for acquiring said purityinformation relating to the physical impurity content of said fluid,said sensor being placed downstream of said purification device.
 32. Theplant of claim 29, wherein said purifying means is a device for removingmicrobiological impurities, and wherein said sensing means is a sensorfor acquiring said purity information relating to the microbiologicalimpurity content of said fluid, said sensor being placed downstream ofthe device for removing microbiological impurities.
 33. The apparatus ofclaim 29, further comprising a first association means for associatingsaid purity information with first information for the identification ofat least one product.
 34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein said firstidentification information is intermediate and temporal identificationinformation, and wherein the apparatus further comprises a first clockfor delivering said first identification information.
 35. The apparatusof claim 34, further comprising a second clock that delivers secondtemporal and intermediate identification information and a secondassociating means for associating said second temporal information withthird, final identification information.
 36. The apparatus of claim 35,wherein said first identification information is final identificationinformation.
 37. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising at leasttwo devices for purifying said fluid and means for the selectiveconnection of said devices to said delivery means, and including a unitfor controlling said selective connection means according to said purityinformation.
 38. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising a fluidpiping system that connects said communicating means and said deliverymeans, in which system said purification device is placed, in that theapparatus includes means for cleaning and sterilizing at least one partof said system, and including a unit for controlling said cleaning andsterilizing means according to said purity information.
 39. Theapparatus of claim 29, wherein said delivery means delivers said fluidin gaseous phase.
 40. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising atank for storing said fluid, said tank being connected to saidcommunicating means.
 41. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein said storagetank is a tank for storing said fluid in liquid phase.
 42. The apparatusof claim 29, wherein said production means is a means for producing foodproducts.
 43. A method of producing products using a fluid, comprising:a) withdrawing the fluid from a source of said fluid; b) purifying ofsaid withdrawn fluid in at least one purification device; c) acquiringat least purity information relating to the purity of said fluid bymeans of at least one sensor placed downstream of said purificationdevice; d) delivering of the purified fluid by a delivery means; e)producing products using said delivered fluid; and f) storing saidpurity information.
 44. The method of claim 43, wherein the purificationstep is a step of removing a chemical impurity, and wherein said purityinformation acquired is information relating to said chemical impuritycontent of said fluid after said purification step.
 45. The method ofclaim 43, wherein the purification step is a step of removing a physicalimpurity, and wherein said purity information acquired is informationrelating to said physical impurity content of said fluid after saidpurification step.
 46. The method of claim 43, wherein the purificationstep is a step of removing a microbiological impurity, and wherein saidpurity information acquired is information relating to saidmicrobiological impurity content of said fluid after said purificationstep.
 47. The method of claim 43, further comprising a first step ofassociating said purity information with first information for theidentification of at least one product.
 48. The method of claim 47,wherein the first identification information is intermediate andtemporal identification information delivered by a first clock.
 49. Themethod of claim 48, further comprising a second step of associatingsecond temporal information delivered by a second clock and third, finalidentification information.
 50. The method of claim 49, wherein saidfirst identification information is final identification information.51. The method of claim 43, further comprising the selective connectionof at least two purification devices to said delivery means, saidselective connection step being controlled according to said purityinformation.
 52. The method of claim 43, further comprising connecting afluid piping system to the source of said fluid and the delivery means,including a step of cleaning and sterilizing at least part of saidsystem, said cleaning and sterilizing step being controlled according tosaid purity information.
 53. The method of claim 43, wherein thedelivery step is a step of delivering said fluid in gaseous phase. 54.The method of claim 43, wherein said source of said fluid is a storagetank.
 55. The method of claim 54, wherein said storage tank is a tankfor storing said fluid in liquid phase.
 56. The method of claim 43,wherein the production step is at least one member from the groupconsisting of: a) producing food products; b) producing pharmaceuticalproducts; c) producing parapharmaceutical products; and d) producingelectronic products.